State extends Charter deadline

Thursday

Charter Communications was given 60 days to figure out how to remove its services from the state of New York in July, which would have required the company to submit a plan for leaving by Sept. 25.

On Aug. 20, the New York State Public Service Commission secretary issued a letter that extends that date until Oct. 9, allowing 14 more days for the company to submit its plan.

The company also asked the PSC for a longer period of time to file petitions for rehearing of the revocation order and the compliance order, which was approved Aug. 22.

That extra time allows for the PSC and Charter to have deeper discussions, according to the PSC’s order.

"This extension will allow Charter and the Department of Public Service staff to discuss various outstanding process issues, including, but not limited to, certain deadlines relating to the pending proceeding in Supreme Court, Albany County, initiated by the department at the direction of the commission in the revocation order," the order says. "The extension also corresponds with the extension of the 60-day deadline granted by the secretary to the commission, which will allow for discussions to occur regarding the contents of that plan."

Charter, which owns the Spectrum brand, has maintained in previous comments that it has met the commitments that the state required when the merger was approved.

"We are pleased that the PSC has extended this deadline so Charter can preserve its legal rights while we continue discussions," a spokesman for the company said in a statement about the extension.

When the state approved Spectrum’s acquisition of Time Warner Cable, it did so based on the fulfillment of certain obligations. Those obligations included providing broadband access to underserved parts of the state and preserving a qualified workforce.

Spectrum also was expected to build out 36,000 by December 2017 and 145,000 throughout the state by May 2020.

Spectrum reported at the beginning of the year that it had brought its network to about 500 previously unserved and underserved locations in Rome, Utica and Kirkland. And since the merger went through last year, Spectrum has reported to the PSC that it has expanded its network to more than the required number of homes.

According to the state, Charter has missed deadlines for required network build-outs and was condemned by the PSC for alleged false advertisement.

On Aug. 31, Public Service Commission Chairman John Rhodes issued a statement that said Charter had been running misleading ads again. When approached about the issue, Rhodes said the ads were removed.

Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi, D-Utica, has been vocal in calling for the state to take action.

He said he’d like to see the state and federal governments hold the company accountable should they not step up and meet their requirements.

"In my opinion, Charter is the worst example of say one thing and do another," he said. "They say that they are expanding their service in underserved areas, but in reality, they’re not. They say that they’re not raising people’s cable bills, when in reality, they are. What I would like to see is them live up to their commitments that they made when they took over Time Warner Cable."

On the federal level, U.S. Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-New Hartford, has supported legislation that provides funding for a rural broadband pilot program, as well as the 2018 farm bill that supports the current and long-term development of rural broadband.

"Spectrum needs to meet its commitment to expanding rural broadband and providing affordable, quality services," Tenney said in a statement. "It was under Gov. (Andrew) Cuomo and Anthony Brindisi's watch that the Charter (Spectrum’s parent company) merger was approved and effectively created a monopoly in Upstate New York. The answer is not to drive one company and thousands more jobs out of New York. Instead, we need more competition so consumers get low prices and better service, not another corrupt deal."

When Charter purchased Time Warner Cable in May 2016, the acquisition had to be approved by the Federal Communications Commission and state public service commissions in all states affected by the merger, which included New York.

Neither the governor nor the New York State Assembly were involved in the proceeding.

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